I was an executive assistant to the CEOs of Sephora and Twitch. Here are the 4 lessons my front row seat to power taught me.

"I was born and raised in LA. My parents were in and out of jail when I was growing up, and it wasn't an easy childhood, but I wouldn't trade it. I got into a magnet program, which is a school with a specialized curriculum that helps foster a diverse student population. I was surrounded by kids from a completely different cultural and socioeconomic world. It was a grind, but it also showed me what was possible."

"I saw just how much visibility an EA role gave me - across finance, brand, marketing, and HR. I had a 360-degree view of the company, and I was sitting in rooms I had no business being in. It felt surreal. When the former CEO left, I applied to be the assistant to the new CEO, Calvin McDonald. I was the only EA in the company putting myself forward for the role, and I remember thinking, " What's the worst that could happen?""

Born and raised in Los Angeles with parents who were in and out of jail, Ebony Belhumeur experienced a challenging childhood but found opportunity through a magnet school program. She attended community college, debated competitively, and studied philosophy and communications but left school to work. After moving to San Francisco, she became an executive assistant at Sephora, gaining cross-functional visibility across finance, brand, marketing, and HR. That 360-degree view enabled her to pursue higher-profile roles, including applying to be assistant to the new CEO. She now lives in a small town in France with her husband and four children and has founded an AI startup. Four guiding lessons—ambition, curiosity, commitment, and resilience—shaped her path.

Read at Business Insider